I originally found your web site searching for a relationship between my anger outbursts and my food consumption and found it also got rid of my 24/7, five year, day-in day-out chronic back pain. I also had ongoing knee and wrist pain from years earlier that I had put down to being overweight as the pain started when the weight did and no xrays or ultrasounds found any issues.

In June 2010, I injured my lower back, it got better, then I would do some gardening or cut my toe nails, or spend too much time in the kitchen (I like to cook), and it would set it off again. After two years of pain /no pain, pain /no pain it stayed for five years. Every second, day and night. I’m not fussed on pharmaceuticals available to me as they either didn’t work or I was a zombie, so I just put up with it. I bought a tens machine, table inverter, saw an osteopath, medicine man, two pain clinics, acupuncture … nothing helped for more than an hour or two.

In September 2016 I started ridding my diet of preservatives and numbers as I did some research on anger and food as I didn’t want to have to take the ”don’t kill people tonic” (black cohosh, chaste tree etc) for the rest of my life. I trialled this abstinence for six weeks as recommended, I wasn’t 100% off everything but probably around 80-90%. I went overseas for a couple of weeks which blew the diet then resumed the diet after Christmas realising that the anger crept in the more the preservatives did. I also noticed that the less numbers and preservatives I consumed the less back, knee and wrist pain I suffered. The more high preservative, high number foods I consumed the back, knee and wrist pain would kick in.

I already bought bread, toothpaste, wine and juice without numbers or preservatives and a year earlier had stopped buying baked beans, tinned spaghetti, sauces, soy and almond milk and changed my brand of peanut butter all because the ingredients in these pre-packaged delights had too much sugar/oil/salt. I didn’t realise preservatives and/or numbers were also in vegemite, crumpets, dried fruit, large volumes of oil like the type restaurants, takeaway shops and packaged food businesses (crisps, popcorn etc) use, cheese, dips, soda, jam, cordial, gherkins, artichoke hearts, beetroot (the last three pickled or tinned), biscuits, grapes, crackers, tacos, cakes, gravy as well as processed meat and prawns. I can’t believe the list goes on forever, other than the last two items these were things I ate, daily. Most thankfully I’ve found have alternatives for within other brands or other shops like health food stores for dried fruit or the Italian fruit shop for pickled vegies.

The damage within my back still exists as it kicks in hard with every period or too much party food. Chronic pain could all be resolved with a lack of acceptable poison.

Here are some recent examples….

* My husband & I went to trivia last Thursday night and to make it on time we needed to eat at the pub. The only vegan item on the menu (yes, I’m also vegan) I had eaten at the other pub they run on Tuesday, felt a bit of back pain on Wednesday and so have crossed that meal off the list as preservative free. Instead, I ate a large bag of crisps for dinner (I hadn’t bought crisps at home for two weeks to avoid them as I was eating a small amount almost every day…), took me two hours to consume but my back and knee pain was excruciating on Friday. You see, my brain can’t comprehend this, but it will eventually as Saturday, my back was a tad stiff but no pain and no pain in my knees.

* During my chronic pain I needed to do stretches and exercises every morning otherwise my entire back would stiffen up, if I missed four consecutive days I could barely walk. In the last two weeks I’ve not exercised or stretched four days straight, twice, and all without pain and minimal stiffness.

* Today I prepped food and cleaned up the kitchen for two hours, before I could just manage 30 minutes without needing to sit on a chair.

A lack of preservatives and numbers/additives in my consumption has also has greatly reduced/rid my recently developed OCD of locking my car multiple times and my depression that I’ve had since my late teens.

My injury is still with me as the damage has been done, but I can’t feel it unless I consume something silly. As is my anger, negativity, depression etc but it seems so far away I can scarcely feel it, it is no longer a highlight in my day.

I didn’t figure people wouldn’t believe me as everyone believed I had the pain I endured.

I was suicidal for the last 5 years coming to grips with the fact that this is as good as it gets and I’m only 40, how bad will this pain be when I’m 80. Not just my back pain, knee pain, chest pain, wrist pain, but can I stand to live with this pain for another 40 years. I changed careers because of it in my forties. Specialists have been telling me to lower my stress levels or lose weight or pace activities. I do all these things for months and no change. I stop consuming preservatives and after a couple of months I cannot feel the pain even if I look for it. And no one cares, no one believes me, maybe because I can’t get my head around it either but that doesn’t mean it’s not true. Both pain clinics I’ve been a patient at over the last few year just ignored me. I really appreciate that you have a place to share with the world the horrors of the food industry. – Alison